[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 2 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. CON. RES. 2

             Expressing the bipartisan resolution on Iraq.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 17, 2007

Mr. Biden (for himself, Mr. Hagel, Mr. Levin, and Ms. Snowe) submitted 
    the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
             Expressing the bipartisan resolution on Iraq.

Whereas the United States strategy and presence on the ground in Iraq can only 
        be sustained with the support of the American people and bipartisan 
        support from Congress;
Whereas maximizing chances of success in Iraq should be our goal, and the best 
        chance of success requires a change in current strategy;
Whereas the situation in Iraq is damaging the standing, influence, and interests 
        of the United States in Iraq, the Middle East, and around the world;
Whereas more than 137,000 United States military personnel are bravely and 
        honorably serving in Iraq and deserve the support of all Americans;
Whereas more than 3,000 United States military personnel have already lost their 
        lives in Iraq, and more than 22,500 have been wounded in Iraq;
Whereas on January 10, 2007, President George W. Bush announced his plan to 
        deepen the United States military involvement in Iraq by deploying 
        approximately 21,000 additional United States combat forces to Iraq;
Whereas Iraq is witnessing widening sectarian and intra-sectarian violence;
Whereas Iraqis must reach a political settlement if there is going to be a 
        reconciliation in Iraq, and the failure of the Iraqis to achieve such a 
        settlement has led to the increase in violence in Iraq;
Whereas Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki stated on November 27, 2006, that 
        ``[t]he crisis is political, and the ones who can stop the cycle of 
        aggravation and bloodletting of innocents are the politicians.'';
Whereas an open-ended commitment of United States forces in Iraq is 
        unsustainable and a deterrent to the Iraqis making the political 
        compromises and providing the personnel and resources that are needed 
        for violence to end and for stability and security to be achieved in 
        Iraq;
Whereas the responsibility for internal security and halting sectarian violence 
        in Iraq must rest primarily with the Government of Iraq and Iraqi 
        security forces;
Whereas there have been repeated promises by the Government of Iraq to assume a 
        greater share of security responsibilities, disband militias, consider 
        amendments to the Iraq constitution, enact laws to reconcile sectarian 
        differences, and improve the quality of life for the Iraqi people, but 
        those promises have not been kept;
Whereas a successful strategy in Iraq is dependent upon the Iraqi leaders 
        fulfilling their promises;
Whereas the commander of the United States Central Command, General John 
        Abizaid, testified to Congress on November 15, 2006, that ``[i]t's easy 
        for the Iraqis to rely upon us to do this work. I believe that more 
        American forces prevent the Iraqis from taking more responsibility for 
        their own future'';
Whereas the Iraq Study Group suggested a comprehensive strategy to ``enable the 
        United States to begin to move its combat forces out of Iraq 
        responsibly'' based on ``new and enhanced diplomatic and political 
        efforts in Iraq and the region'';
Whereas the United States Army and Marine Corps, including their Reserves and 
        the Army National Guard, their personnel, and their families, are under 
        enormous strain from multiple, extended deployments to Iraq and 
        Afghanistan;
Whereas the majority of nondeployed Army and Marine Corps units are no longer 
        combat ready due to a lack of equipment and insufficient time to train; 
        and
Whereas the United States strategy in Iraq must not compromise the ability of 
        the United States to address other vital national security priorities, 
        in particular global terror networks, proliferation of weapons of mass 
        destruction, regional stability in the Middle East, the nuclear program 
        of Iran, the nuclear weapons of North Korea, and stability and security 
        in Afghanistan: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That it is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) it is not in the national interest of the United States 
        to deepen its military involvement in Iraq, particularly by 
        escalating the United States military force presence in Iraq;
            (2) the primary objective of United States strategy in Iraq 
        should be to have the Iraqi political leaders make the 
        political compromises necessary to end the violence in Iraq;
            (3) greater concerted regional, and international support 
        would assist the Iraqis in achieving a political solution and 
        national reconciliation;
            (4) main elements of the mission of United States forces in 
        Iraq should transition to helping ensure the territorial 
        integrity of Iraq, conduct counterterrorism activities, reduce 
        regional interference in the internal affairs of Iraq, and 
        accelerate training of Iraqi troops;
            (5) the United States should transfer, under an 
        appropriately expedited timeline, responsibility for internal 
        security and halting sectarian violence in Iraq to the 
        Government of Iraq and Iraqi security forces; and
            (6) the United States should engage nations in the Middle 
        East to develop a regional, internationally-sponsored peace and 
        reconciliation process for Iraq.
                                 <all>